Candida Albicans: New Insights in Infection, Disease, and Treatment

Candida albicans is commonly found in the gastrointestinal tract, oral cavity, and genital area as a harmless commensal. Based on recent studies in healthy individuals, asymptomatic oral carriage of Candida species is estimated to occur in 24–70% of children and adults, with a reduced frequency in babies less than 1 year of age (Table 5.1). Of isolates identified, the majority are C. albicans (38–76% in adults and children). Again, the frequency of C. albicans differs across different age groups, with a far greater proportion of isolates identified as C. albicans in young babies and in the elderly (Table 5.1). Higher oral carriage rates are found in HIV positive patients (Sanchez-Vargas et al., 2005a; Liu et al., 2006) and diabetics (Belazi et al., 2005).